2018's Best Movies That Critics Were Totally Wrong About

If you ever look up reviews of your favorite films, you might find yourself shaking your head and wondering if these critics watched the same movie that you did. Sometimes, critics fawn all over something that bombs at the box office and gets a mediocre response from audiences, and other times, viewers have nothing but praise for a film that critics seem to detest. Obviously, movie critics aren't totally objective — they have their own biases and preferences just like everyone else, and just because critics rave about a certain film doesn't mean that audiences will agree.

Throughout 2018, there were plenty of major blockbusters and indie films alike that were big hits with audiences despite being panned by critics. Don't let the negative reviews discourage you from checking them out — sure, not every movie is destined to be the next Citizen Kane, but that doesn't mean these new releases aren't worth watching. Here are a few surprisingly good films that deserve a second look, contrary to the critical consensus.

Based on the novel of the same name by Sarah Waters, The Little Stranger received mixed reviews from critics, but perhaps it's because this film is not easily defined by any given genre. Set in 1940s, The Little Stranger tells the story of Dr. Faraday (Domhnall Gleeson) and his recurring encounters with the supernatural at an old estate called Hundreds Hall.

As a child, Faraday once visited Hundreds Hall with his mother, who worked there as a maid. After becoming a practicing physician later in life, he makes a house call to the estate, but he comes to realize that the strange behavior of the current inhabitants might be influenced by a paranormal entity. The Little Stranger straddles the line between straight horror and psychological thriller, and although the New York Post wrote it off as "occasionally spooky, but often snoozy," this creepy, atmospheric family drama might have you thinking twice about every bump you hear in the night.

The Clovehitch Killer only received a limited theatrical release, so if you happened to miss it, look past the mixed bag of reviews and get ready to be engrossed in a mystery centered on small town secrets. Tyler (Charlie Plummer) lives with his dedicated and devout Christian family in a tiny Kentucky town. When he discovers evidence that connects his father to a string of unsolved murder cases, he's unsure of who he can really trust. He seeks helps from Kassi (Madisen Beaty), who goes to his church, and together, they try to investigate what everyone in town is really hiding.

The New York Times noted the "achingly slow build" and "lack of urgency" in The Clovehitch Killer, but the steady pacing grounds the film in a sense of realism that is often missing from other suspenseful dramas. The Clovehitch Killer is unsettling enough without speeding up the plot. Being patient with this storyline is worth the final payoff.

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom is the sequel to the 2015 film Jurassic World, and in the new installment of the revived Jurassic Park franchise, fans see heroes Owen Grady (Chris Pratt) and Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard) return to the big screen. After the disaster at Isla Nublar, the U.S. government is debating whether or not the dinosaurs on the island should be rescued from an impending volcanic eruption. When the Senate rules that they will leave the dinosaurs to die, Claire and her team come up with a plan to save them on their own.

Just like the first Jurassic World film, Fallen Kingdom is a fun summer blockbuster jam-packed with CGI dinos and exciting, nail-biting battles. Ars Technica may have called it a "B movie" with "cartoonish villains," but that's not exactly an insult — in fact, it's exactly what audiences signed up for when they bought their tickets.

The Nun, a loose spin-off of the 2016 film The Conjuring 2, is the fifth installment in The Conjuring franchise, and turned out to be the highest-grossing entry since the original. Although fans of the series flocked to theaters to see it, critics didn't exactly hold it in high esteem.

When two nuns at a Romanian abbey are attacked by a paranormal force as they try to retrieve an ancient relic, neither ends up surviving the encounter, and the Vatican calls in Father Burke (Demian Bichir) and Sister Irene (Taissa Farmiga) to handle the situation. They eventually discover that the abbey is possessed by the evil entity Valak, and it's up to them to stop it before disaster strikes. While The Nun was dismissed by some critics as a series of jump scares and other horror tropes, fans of The Conjuring series will find that it's a welcome addition to the franchise with familiar themes of the spiritual struggle between good and evil, and Farmiga is always the perfect fit for a spooky role that calls to mind her American Horror Story days.  

Movies based on video games tend to be hit or miss, to say the least. Although the critics seem to have unanimously decided that Rampage, which was based on the video game series of the same name, was a miss, it could still be a hit with viewers who go into it with the right expectations. The film stars Dwayne Johnson as Davis Okoye, a primatologist who has to team up with a mutant albino gorilla, the result of an experiment gone wrong. What are they fighting against? Oh, just a mutant wolf and crocodile who are intent on destroying Chicago.

As far as sci-fi monster movies go, Rampage really isn't half bad. What could be more fun than watching The Rock and a gorilla join forces to defeat the bad guys? Although Vulture went as far as labeling the film "aggressively dumb," director Brad Peyton clearly knew what his target audience wanted: Rampage was nominated for several Teen Choice Awards.

The Spy Who Dumped Me is a refreshing action flick with a heavy dose of female empowerment and comedy. With a star-studded cast and plenty of moments that had audiences laughing out loud, it's hard to see why critics didn't have much love for this film.

After Audrey (Mila Kunis) is unceremoniously dumped by her boyfriend Drew (Justin Theroux) via text message, she discovers that he is secretly a CIA agent... and now, he's gone missing. It's up to Audrey and her best friend Morgan (Kate McKinnon) to figure out what's happened to him and come to the rescue. Most of the criticism of The Spy Who Dumped Me came back to the film's refusal to pin itself to one single genre. According to The Arizona Republic, it was "trying earnestly to be about half a dozen things." But there's nothing wrong with a little creative genre blending, and with a genuinely hilarious duo like McKinnon and Kunis in the lead, it all comes together for a film that provides a solid evening of entertainment.